Away from the hustle and bustle of the city, a family is trying to make a new beginning in the quiet comfort of the country.

However, not all things are so quiet for Richard and Jennifer Crawford in Burl-Oak Theatre Group’s presentation of Hide and Seek.

The supernatural thriller opens Thursday at The Oakville Centre for the Performing Arts.

Written by British playwright Lezley Havard, the play is fast-paced and full of drama.

“It’s a good play... It’s got a twist ending, which is interesting. What really attracted me was the interplay between the various characters,” said David Nash, a longtime member of the local drama scene and a first-time director with Burl-Oak.

“It’s a very entertaining play and people will probably be talking about it on their way home.”

After 18 years of marriage, the Crawfords are finally about to become parents. Jennifer (Francesca Brugnano) is far along in her pregnancy and will be giving birth soon. The couple moves into an old farmhouse, which had previously been vacant for 10 years.

Richard (Greg Proctor) continues commuting to the city to work, while Jennifer stays at home to oversee the restoration of the house, where lights and plumbing strangely fail.

There are tensions between the couple, there are tensions between them and Richard’s brother, and with a neighbour.

“He (the neighbour) dominates his wife, whose a very nervous woman. She comes into the house and he comes in to fetch her,” Nash said.

Jennifer sees a strange little girl playing on the swing near the farmhouse. However, when she mentions it to her neighbours, she gets chastised by the husband.

The neighbours had lost a daughter a few years before, while the girl’s twin sister isn’t allowed to play up by the house.

“Because the girl disappeared, Jennifer must be stirring up trouble for a story because she worked for a magazine,” Nash said of the man’s motives.

The play is one in which the real and supernatural clash.

Nash plans to use some lighting and sound effects to bring the supernatural to the stage. However, most of the work to bring the supernatural to life will be done by the actors.

“The script itself leads you to that conclusion and the skill of the actors in bringing that to life are also paramount. How they act and interact, how they deal with the things that are happening, all that lends itself to how you portray a supernatural occurrence,” Nash said.